What is a split cycle? Need help with workouts...

[SpanishLady2069]

Hi guys! I'm new to the site and even though I'm not new to working out or dieting, I am new to the BB language. I have to lose 35 lbs and while my workouts are consistent, I'm looking to change it up for maximum results. I am Hispanic, 37 years old, 5 feet tall and have a medium body frame. Not petite by any means. I hold most of my weight on my hips, butt and legs. That's just part of my heritage and I will never be twiggy and it's not my goal to be. Not that there is anything wrong with twiggy, it's just not the way I am built. My legs are very strong and big for my short stature and want to avoid at all costs making them any bigger. I'd like to lean them out as much as possible without sacrificing strength or curviness. I, like most Hispanic women, like my curves. I think they're sexy! My usual workouts consist of 45 minutes cardio and 40 minutes weights per day. I alternate upper and lower body parts on weights daily. Any helpful info is greatly appreciated. I do not have a gym membership, because I just never get there. I have a Bowflex at home, hand held weights up to 15 lbs and plenty of cardio DVD's,videos, Bootcamp, etc... Feel freel to taylor a workout for me for my specific needs with what I've got to work with. I welcome all suggestions and input.

Thank you!

[LianaTaylor]

What are you doing now? What does your 45 mins of cardio consist of? What are you doing for those 40 mins of weights (both lower & upper body)? You said you're consistent, but how many days a week are you doing cardio? Weights? More importantly, how is your diet?

[CubanChick]

Originally Posted by SpanishLady2069

Hi guys! I'm new to the site and even though I'm not new to working out or dieting, I am new to the BB language. I have to lose 35 lbs and while my workouts are consistent, I'm looking to change it up for maximum results. I am Hispanic, 37 years old, 5 feet tall and have a medium body frame. Not petite by any means. I hold most of my weight on my hips, butt and legs. That's just part of my heritage and I will never be twiggy and it's not my goal to be. Not that there is anything wrong with twiggy, it's just not the way I am built. My legs are very strong and big for my short stature and want to avoid at all costs making them any bigger. I'd like to lean them out as much as possible without sacrificing strength or curviness. I, like most Hispanic women, like my curves. I think they're sexy! My usual workouts consist of 45 minutes cardio and 40 minutes weights per day. I alternate upper and lower body parts on weights daily. Any helpful info is greatly appreciated. I do not have a gym membership, because I just never get there. I have a Bowflex at home, hand held weights up to 15 lbs and plenty of cardio DVD's,videos, Bootcamp, etc... Feel freel to taylor a workout for me for my specific needs with what I've got to work with. I welcome all suggestions and input.

Thank you!

Holla otra mujer hispana in the house . Curves are my best friend . 45 minutes of cardio sounds like alot to me, even with the amount of weight you want to lose. You need to post up your diet and exact routine. You may need to clean that diet up.

I have made substantial gains in my lifts and have lost alot of inches. Not much on the scales, but my body has told me there is a big difference. I am lucky to get my cardio in 1-2x a week, if that and for only about 18 minutes.

Buena suerte

[jennyd]

Weight Loss using Expedrine....

She's already mentioned that she needs some help with her diet.

45 minutes of cardio isn't too much if she's not too concerned with maintaining muscle. That much cardio will help thin you out, but won't help you retain muscle as easily.

SpanishLady, which do you normally do first? If you're doing your cardio and weights together, I'd suggest doing your weight training first, followed by moderately paced cardio. You'll probably get more out of your weight training by doing weights first, rather than being pooped because you're tired from the cardio session.

Just my thoughts.

[SpanishLady2069]

You guys are awesome. Thanks for all the feedback. Ok, I'll try to answer everyone in this 1 e-mail. This is what I've doing and I know it needs work, so fire away!

Breakfast:
1 packet of Oatmeal
2 or 3 egg whites with chopped mushrooms and onions or a Protein Shake (1 scoop of designer protein, ½ banana and 1 cup of soy milk and ice)

snack:
1 fat free yogurt and piece of fruit, usually an apple or peach

Lunch:
4-6 oz of grilled chx or white fish; ½ of a sweet potato or 1 cup of brown rice, big salad, 1 tbsp. Olive oil and vinegar.

Snack:
Trouble here - I usually try to have some fresh veggies around or granola, but not lately. I’ve been hitting the M&M’s pretty hard - I ain’t gonna lie!

Dinner - again, trouble here, usually skip it because I’m too tired to cook, but when I do get up the energy, I usually stick with chicken, veggies, maybe some whole wheat pasta or rice. Sometimes Chinese food! Again, I’m not going to lie about it, that’s why I’m asking for help!

My workouts are:
45 minutes of step aerobics, or walking really fast, also Boot Camp videos, I also try to hit a spin class 2x a week. I do this at least 5x a week. Abs I do daily on a workout ball.

Weights:
Monday: Lower body
Hamstrings leg curls - around 30 to 40 lbs right now - 3 sets, 10-12 reps
Quads - around the same as above

Inner and outer thigh exercise (I forget the name of this one) - around 20 lbs, not very heavy due to hip problems. 3 sets for both inner/outer, 12-15 reps. I don’t increase weight with this one because of the hip problems.

Squats: no weights - 3 sets, 15 reps

I also do different floor exercises for my lower body with small DB’s

Tuesday: Upper body
Biceps, triceps, shoulders
Biceps: 5-10 lbs, 3 sets, 10-12 reps
Triceps: 5-10 lbs, 3 sets, 10-12 reps
Shoulders: Not sure the weight on these, probably not more than 20 lbs, same sets and reps.

Wednesday: Rest

Thursday: Chest, back and calves. Weights for chest and back vary, I use the Bowflex for these and can’t remember what I’m up to probably 40lbs for chest and 60 for back more or less. Calves, I use my own body weight for these.

Friday: Lower Body: Same as Monday

Saturday: Upper Body - Same as tuesday

Sunday - Rest

Splitting up my workouts doesn't work for me, because I tend to get home late from work and just don't have the energy. So I tend to do my weights first in the morning then on to the Cardio.

Okay - Let me have it!

[SpanishLady2069]

Originally Posted by CubanChick

Holla otra mujer hispana in the house . Curves are my best friend . 45 minutes of cardio sounds like alot to me, even with the amount of weight you want to lose. You need to post up your diet and exact routine. You may need to clean that diet up.

I have made substantial gains in my lifts and have lost alot of inches. Not much on the scales, but my body has told me there is a big difference. I am lucky to get my cardio in 1-2x a week, if that and for only about 18 minutes.

Buena suerte

Hey Cuban Chick! Thanks for the input. Definitely welcome it, I know you know my struggle, we carry it all in the hips don't we! LOL! I've seen your pics on this site and you look great. As soon as I get up the nerve I'll post a few as well, but only after I see some results!

[SpanishLady2069]

Originally Posted by jennyd

Weight Loss using Expedrine....

She's already mentioned that she needs some help with her diet.

45 minutes of cardio isn't too much if she's not too concerned with maintaining muscle. That much cardio will help thin you out, but won't help you retain muscle as easily.

SpanishLady, which do you normally do first? If you're doing your cardio and weights together, I'd suggest doing your weight training first, followed by moderately paced cardio. You'll probably get more out of your weight training by doing weights first, rather than being pooped because you're tired from the cardio session.

Just my thoughts.

Hi Jenny:

Actually I am concerned with retaining muscle. Even though I do want to lean out as much as possible, I also want to firm up and not necessarily build muscle but I'd like to tighten it all up. Any suggestions? I posted what I've been doing thus far and I'll put the work into it, I'm very dedicated and motivated, so let me have it! Thanks!

[jlozan84]

Def drop the M&Ms and Chinese Food

When do you train? Unless you train after dinner, you don't want to be loading up on carbs that late.

As far as losing weight while gaining muscle - easy thing to remember is to limit your carbs to in the morning and before/after you train. The rest of the day, you should only be consuming protein, healthy fats, and trace carbs & fiber.

Good luck.

[SpanishLady2069]

Originally Posted by jlozan84

Def drop the M&Ms and Chinese Food

When do you train? Unless you train after dinner, you don't want to be loading up on carbs that late.

As far as losing weight while gaining muscle - easy thing to remember is to limit your carbs to in the morning and before/after you train. The rest of the day, you should only be consuming protein, healthy fats, and trace carbs & fiber.

Good luck.

LOL! I'm working on it! Otherwise, how's the workout? Do I need to change anything there?

Thanks!

[jennyd]

OK...I'm just gonna throw some suggestions out there.

Diet:
As you know, you'll have to cut out the M&M snacking...although, IMO it's ok to give into cravings every once in a while.
Oh...and the Chinese food...unless it's steamed chicken and broccoli...LOL.

For Dinner, can you maybe cook up some chicken earlier in the week, and this way you just need to reheat it? (Or any other lean meat...turkey, beef, etc.)
And then steam some veggies really quickly in the microwave or something? By doing this, you're still eating your dinner, but it's fairly simple and fairly quick.

Try and give yourself a cutoff time for carbs. This way, if you have it worked into your schedule, it will be a little easier to follow.

(Just a few tips...nothing too detailed)

Workout:
I saw that you're doing your cardio after, and I think that's a good thing if you have to do your weights and cardio together.

But, it's going to be harder to retain muscle if you're doing that much cardio. And...the more muscle you have, the more fat your body will burn in the long run.
Can you do a brisk run or some moderate form of cardio for 20-30 minutes?
If you can't, then you can't...but it's just a suggestion.

You should look to switch your routine up every so often because your body will become used to your training, and you will eventually stop making progress.

I'd add some weight to the squats. You can also throw some weighted lunges in there.

What are you doing for Tris? If you're benching, you will be hitting your triceps, but you can also do some simple weighted bench dips (putting the weight on your lap), or some skull crushers.

What are you doing for shoulders? You can do some standing military presses, upright rows, bent over lateral raises, standing lateral raises (I just like to hit my shoulders from every angle).

Your back? Do you have a lat tower? You can do Lat Pull Downs. You can do some bent over rows, or some seated rows to hit your back. Deadlifts will hit your back well, but IMO they're pretty hardcore, and I don't know if that's exactly what you're looking for.

As for your split, I'd probably do Chest/Tris/Shoulders one day and Back/Bis together on another day, and keep the legs separate for their own day.

I know this post may seem long, but it's just a couple of suggestions that you can do to change things up, and as you progress and learn what works for you and what doesn't, you can continue to change and continue to progress.

Good Luck.

[drugsarebad...hummmkayy]

Originally Posted by jennyd

OK...I'm just gonna throw some suggestions out there.

Diet:
As you know, you'll have to cut out the M&M snacking...although, IMO it's ok to give into cravings every once in a while.
Oh...and the Chinese food...unless it's steamed chicken and broccoli...LOL.

For Dinner, can you maybe cook up some chicken earlier in the week, and this way you just need to reheat it? (Or any other lean meat...turkey, beef, etc.)
And then steam some veggies really quickly in the microwave or something? By doing this, you're still eating your dinner, but it's fairly simple and fairly quick.

Try and give yourself a cutoff time for carbs. This way, if you have it worked into your schedule, it will be a little easier to follow.

(Just a few tips...nothing too detailed)

Workout:
I saw that you're doing your cardio after, and I think that's a good thing if you have to do your weights and cardio together.

But, it's going to be harder to retain muscle if you're doing that much cardio. And...the more muscle you have, the more fat your body will burn in the long run.
Can you do a brisk run or some moderate form of cardio for 20-30 minutes?
If you can't, then you can't...but it's just a suggestion.

You should look to switch your routine up every so often because your body will become used to your training, and you will eventually stop making progress.

I'd add some weight to the squats. You can also throw some weighted lunges in there.

What are you doing for Tris? If you're benching, you will be hitting your triceps, but you can also do some simple weighted bench dips (putting the weight on your lap), or some skull crushers.

What are you doing for shoulders? You can do some standing military presses, upright rows, bent over lateral raises, standing lateral raises (I just like to hit my shoulders from every angle).

Your back? Do you have a lat tower? You can do Lat Pull Downs. You can do some bent over rows, or some seated rows to hit your back. Deadlifts will hit your back well, but IMO they're pretty hardcore, and I don't know if that's exactly what you're looking for.

As for your split, I'd probably do Chest/Tris/Shoulders one day and Back/Bis together on another day, and keep the legs separate for their own day.

I know this post may seem long, but it's just a couple of suggestions that you can do to change things up, and as you progress and learn what works for you and what doesn't, you can continue to change and continue to progress.

Good Luck.

excelent post! +1 rep